Material handling equipment

Material handling equipment is a mechanical equipment that has been proved to be useful in storage, control, movement and protection of various goods, materials and products. They complement the transportation process in transporting loads, process lines and areas where a crane is not possible to use.

Material handling devices are means of close transport with a limited range and intermittent traffic, used to transport loads throughout the process of manufacturing, distribution, consumption and disposal. They are a base for connection between elements of the production process in various industries. The task of the material handling equipment is to transport construction elements, different products or machines from one place to another, e.g. production hall or from a hall to the storage yard through unloaded areas.

The capacity of a specific material handling device can vary between models as they are adjusted to the specifics of the process they need to handle. They can reach up to several hundred tons.

The material handling solutions help by restricting the application of the burdens associated with the material handling of contents, loads or materials, and facilitating those operations.

The advantages

The material handling solutions help to relieve employees from having to carry heavy loads and transport them across e.g. warehouses or supermarket areas when stocking up the goods. They make the task of transporting products or loading them easy and time efficient. The right material handling equipment can completely shift the work dynamics in a workplace as the ease of fulfilling daily tasks is significantly reduced.

The strain of repetitive movements connected to heavy lifting or moving the loads across halls, warehouses or construction sites could be a crucial factor in deterioration of their health and well-being resulting in sick leaves and loss of resources.

Example of material handling equipment is the TRANSLYFT pallet lifter which is ideal for palletizing and depalletizing. The main advantage of the pallet lifter offered by TRANSLYFT, is that it is small making it perfect for places where space is limited. It is also sturdy and can easily be transported from one workstation to another.

You might wonder where to purchase a material handling equipment from TRANSLYFT, look no further, we have agents all over Europe ready to help you and give the best advice of a right product for you. The assessment of the right solution is the most vital part of the purchase, it is an investment in your workplace’s future and your employee’s well-being. The knowledge and expertise of our sales team will certainly help you whether you have doubts regarding which material handling equipment is the right one for you or you simply do not know which one could optimize your everyday operations in the best possible way.

The European Directive

The European Union directive tackling issue of the material handling of loads (The Directive 90/269/EEC - material handling of loads of 29 May 1990 on the minimum health and safety requirements for the material handling of loads where there is a risk particularly of back injury to workers) 1 informs about the obligation of the employer regarding handling any type of loads.

They are to take measures within an organization to ensure safety and well-being of the workers. Where the material handling of loads cannot be avoided, the employer is bound to use appropriate means and provide workers with the appropriate material handling equipment in order to reduce the risk involved in the material handling.

The characteristics of a workstation as well as specifics of the load should be examined in order to choose the right solution, which would minimize or completely reduce the risk of an employee getting injured by handling a load. Loads that indicate risk of having a significant impact on the back area are described as:

Too heavy or too large,
Unwieldy or difficult to grasp,
Unstable or has contents likely to shift,
Positioned in a manner requiring it to be held or manipulated at a distance from the trunk, or with a bending or twisting of the trunk,
Likely, because of its contours and/or consistency, to result in injury to workers, particularly in the event of a collision.

See more on the legislation on material handling equipment at https://osha.europa.eu